When Maroš Šefčovič, the Commission's Vice President for the Energy Union visited Bucharest in October 2015 to discuss Romania’s role in the overhaul of Europe's energy sector, his speech seemed promising at first. It focused on renewables, energy efficiency and research and innovation – all issues that are rarely on the Romanian public agenda. But eventually, much like the Commission's assessment for Romania (pdf) that was presented during the visit, the message and its level of ambition felt more like much ado about nothing.
On 20 November 2015, following the presentation of the first State of the Energy Union, Vice-President Šefčovič hosted a Twitter Chat. Also several Bankwatchers joined the discussion. Here are some points we found noteworthy.
It’s no secret that Poland is not the biggest proponent of ambitious European climate and energy policies. Rather than give Poland the extra nudge it needs to transform its increasingly obsolete energy system, the Energy Union risks sustaining – and legitimising – the Polish addiction to fossil fuels.
A leaked document, published here for the first time, that outlines the Slovenian government’s priorities for the EU’s Energy Union reveals a potential conflict with what the European Commission has on offer. Yet, neither promises ambitious strides towards more renewables.
Similar to what we have seen in other countries, when it comes to concrete projects in Slovakia the Energy Union proposals are so far to a much larger extent aiming at security of (gas) supply than they are at decarbonisation.
The Energy Union must find ways to prevent state support for the production of fossil fuel energy by the European Union’s immediate neighbours. The EU cannot afford to have newly acceding members holding up progress towards the new 2030 climate goals or watering down future policy making.
Building the Energy Union, the European Commission pretends that all is well for renewables in Croatia and unnecessarily fixates on diversifying gas supply instead of managing demand.
To make sure Latvia’s energy path does not lead into a dead end for sustainability, the Energy Union should facilitate alternatives to unsustainable fuelwood.
EU energy ministers are meeting in Brussels today to discuss the implementation of the Energy Union. Looking at what has been discussed so far, the strategy may not prioritise energy efficiency enough to help Europe become climate-friendly.
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